The Billionaire's Secret Wife (The Pryce Family Book 3) (Volume 3) (17 page)

“You’ll be cut off.”

“That doesn’t bother me.”

Barron gave him a penetrating squint. “What’s changed? The idea that you might not be my heir always bothered you.”

“I found something I value more than Sterling & Wilson.”

Barron snorted, then chuckled, the sound reluctant and soft. He reached for his tea. “All this over a girl.”

“She’s my wife. And she’s pregnant.”

Barron choked on his tea, and Justin walked over to pound his great-uncle’s back with slightly more force than was necessary.

“Pregnant?” Barron gasped. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. About eight weeks now.”

A huge grin split Barron’s face. “Kerri, and now you!” He let out a booming laugh. “Wonderful!”

“I’m still quitting.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Sterling & Wilson is also your son’s legacy.”

“It may not be a son,” Justin pointed out.

“Bah. Son, daughter, what does it matter? Girls can lead a company just as well as boys.”

Justin watched his uncle with bemusement. The old curmudgeon sometimes surprised him.

“If it would make you feel better, I suppose I could try to be more considerate of your situation.” Barron pursed his lips, but then he noticed the sugar cookies laid out for him. “By the way, did that marketing VP turn in his resignation?”

“Who, Ross?” Justin frowned. “No.”

“If he doesn’t do so by COB today, fire him.”

“Why?”

“He came to me to discuss your comments on his latest ideas yesterday, and I told him to resign.”

Justin scowled.

“You have to make examples of a few. Then things will be fine. I won’t overrule you no matter who you fire. I’m on the board, but that doesn’t mean I want to make managerial decisions. That’s your job.”

“Fine. I’ll talk with Hayashi and see if we can cut the strings on his golden parachute.”

Barron smiled. “See? There’s a reason I chose you. We always were on the same wavelength, as you youngsters like to say.”

* * *

After Barron left, Justin got up and stretched, then poured himself a drink. Finally, it looked like he was going to have full control of the company. It was a considerable weight off his shoulders.

As he sipped his scotch he glanced at the clock. It was already a little after one thirty. It was a Friday and victory or no, he didn’t feel like staying in the office any longer. Just at that moment a notice came in that there was a replacement jet and pilot waiting for him at the airport.

Okay
,
time to go to L
.
A
.
and do some damage control
. But first, he needed to take care of a bit of business.

Rita helped him put away all his documents. “Anything else before you leave?”

“Actually, there is. Can you ask Keith Ross to come to my office?”

“Sure.”

“And get the security team ready to escort him out.”

Her smile faltered. “Uh… Is he being let go?”

“Yes, but don’t tell him. You know the protocol.”

She nodded. A few minutes later, Keith showed up. He was always well-packaged—an expensive suit, an expensive watch and expensive shoes. His dark hair was slicked back, the high forehead shiny as a pebble in a river. “Hey, boss. You wanted to see me?”

“Yes. Close the door.” Justin pointed his chin at the armchair and waited until the other man was seated. “You’re being let go effective immediately.”

His eyes bulged out, making him look like a goldfish. “
What?
”

“You heard me.”

“Why? My performance has been exemplary.”

“If you truly believe that, you’re delusional. Your performance has been adequate, but is outweighed by your disruptive influence. Nobody can undermine my authority and expect to stay on my team.”

“Jesus.” He raked a hand through his hair. “Is this because I called Barron yesterday?”

Justin merely sat back and watched Keith’s face turn red.

“It was just to get some feedback. It wasn’t like I was going over your head.”

“Spin, spin, spin,” Justin said, circling his finger in the air.

“Come on! I have a family.”

“Then you should’ve done your job, which doesn’t include running to Barron every time you disagree with my decisions.
I
sit in the CEO’s seat.
I
call the shots.”

“Justin—”

“I’ve been lenient with you, but obviously that hasn’t worked. Security will escort you out.” Justin got up and left, while the former VP sputtered. Outside his office two large men dressed in black were waiting.

That taken care of, he called Mark Pryce to make a reservation at his restaurant. They should probably do a big family dinner with Vanessa’s relatives since none of them had gotten invited to the wedding. Then he groaned when he saw a call from his mother. Ever since his father passed away, she’d lived like a hermit, but for her to call was serious. There was no way to avoid this one.

“Hi, Mom!” he said extra cheerily.

“Justin Augustine Sterling!”

He winced. She hadn’t used his full name or that tone of voice since he was twelve.

“I cannot
believe
you got married and didn’t tell me about it!”

He didn’t mention she wouldn’t have come to the ceremony anyway since she didn’t like to travel, and a small town in Ohio was probably not a suitable venue for an overpriced high society wedding. “I didn’t invite Barron either,” he said lamely.

“He’s your great-uncle. I’m your
mother!
”

“I know, I know. Look, I’m sorry. But don’t worry. I married a very nice, very smart girl. Vanessa Pryce. You remember her, right?” His mother might not get out much, but she didn’t live in a bunker either.

There was a pause. “Yes. The lawyer girl?”

“Right.”

“I thought you were dating London.”

“Well…I was. It didn’t work out.”

“And that was only a few weeks ago. How is it that you suddenly changed your mind and fell in love with Vanessa?”

Justin smiled at how outraged his mother sounded.

“Please don’t tell me you married her because of her looks. Vanessa’s a nice girl, but I’m afraid you might have gone for the looks. I’ve yet to see a girl that gorgeous, except possibly for the Fairchild girl.” Catherine Fairchild was so good-looking, she didn’t even seem human at times.

“Don’t worry, Mom. I didn’t marry her for looks. We’ve been dating on and off since college. You remember how I went to Stanford, even though Barron wanted me to go to Harvard?”

“Yes. You argued quite a bit over that, as I recall.”

“Vanessa was attending Stanford Law.”

“Oh.”

“As much as I love a pretty face, I also enjoy good conversation.”

She sighed. “I suppose I ought to have more faith, but it’s so difficult. Barron gave you too much of
everything
too soon. It’s just not normal for a young man to grow up the way you did and not lose some sense of proportion. I never like how he kept pushing you to be as horrible and entitled as possible.”

He chuckled. It was no secret she disapproved of Barron’s Machiavellian ways. “Don’t worry, Mom. I haven’t forgotten anything you taught me.”

“Good. But you’re going to bring her home soon? I want to see her.”

“We’ll have to see our schedule. She’s pretty busy. Besides, she’s pregnant.”

“Already?” There was a pause. “Did she get pregnant before or after you married her?”

“I…don’t know. It happened so fast.”

“I suppose it doesn’t really matter.” She let out something that sounded suspiciously like a squeal. “Oh my stars, I’m going to be a grandmother!”

“Looks like it.”

“All right then. You bring her home soon. And let me know if she’s allergic to anything. I’m going to cook.”

Justin smiled at that. His mother rarely cooked these days, but when she did it was a treat. “All right. Will do. Love you, Mom.”

“Love you too. I hope you two make each other as happy as your father made me.”

Chapter Sixteen

By the time Vanessa arrived home a little after five, Justin was waiting for her. She gave him a hard look. “I can’t believe you did what you did.”

He put his hands up, palms out. “Hey, I didn’t tell anyone. Barron found out.”

“How? We were in a helicopter, and our witnesses were your lawyers. Did they talk?”

“No. It’s my fault. He noticed expenses related to my commute and decided to dig around.”

“
Expenses?
Since when does the world’s fifth richest man worry about expenses?”

“I know. But Barron’s suspicious. He didn’t grow up rich, so he checks everything. I should’ve anticipated that and done things differently.” Justin made a face. “Was he bad?”

“You would
not
believe! He forced two weeks’ vacation on me. He insisted I be welcomed ‘properly’ into the family without consulting me on the timing or anything. No, it’s what he wants, so that’s the way it’s going to happen.” Vanessa stopped to take a breath. “FYI, Mom knows about the baby. There was no way I could keep quiet about us once Barron visited the office. Then of course Mom wanted to know why we married, so I had to tell her.”

“That’s fine. Your mom has every right to worry.”

Vanessa nodded, not telling him about the rest of the conversation. Her mother had always wanted her to protect herself, and she knew that was the smart thing to do. She was comfortable, but didn’t have as much money as people assumed, since after having taken her inheritance to buy the condo and pay off her debts, she’d spent most of it setting up a nationwide non-profit organization, Just and Proper Help, to provide legal aid to the poor. The only person who knew she was behind it was Gavin Lloyd, and that was only because he managed its assets. She’d never had the time to really get involved in running the NPO, and she preferred to keep her connection to it quiet.

“We have a reservation at Éternité tonight,” Justin said. “Mark and Iain will be joining us, probably with their fiancées.”

Ah
,
okay
. That explained why her brothers hadn’t called yet. They were probably saving all their questions for the face-to-face inquisition. At least Justin would be there to help her handle them.
I should get my rings from the jewelry box for dinner
. There was no reason to keep them hidden anymore.

“I’m not sure about Dane, though. I just left a message with his assistant. And I invited your parents as well.”

She looked up quickly. “Both of them?”

“Yes. I thought about doing it separately, but each asked me to invite the other.”

Vanessa frowned. She’d been certain they wouldn’t want to be anywhere near each other. Maybe they just didn’t want to be jerks in front of the new Sterling son-in-law. Getting Justin was a coup by anyone’s standards, and if her grandmother had been alive, she would’ve praised Vanessa to the skies. “By the way, Kerri called. I think we may have to do an obligatory dinner or something soon with your side of the family, too.”

“No, we don’t, not unless you want to.”

She shook her head. “The cat’s out of the bag, so we should do what’s expected of us. I don’t want any friction, especially right off the bat.” She knew what that was like at home with her family, all the tension and unspoken words on every holiday. It would be nice to avoid that, not just for her sake, but for the sake of their child. She didn’t particularly look forward to holidays, but she wanted her children to anticipate every one of them with joy.

“Okay. I’ll take care of it. And let Rita know when your next doctor’s appointment is so she can put that on my calendar.”

“Aren’t you going to be busy?” The accident from the day before must’ve screwed up his schedule for the next few weeks.

“I’m always busy.” He put a warm, strong hand over her belly. “But you and the baby matter more.”

She blinked away sudden tears. She didn’t know why she felt like crying just now when he was being so sweet. It had to be hormones.

Or maybe she was just scared he was becoming too irresistible for her own good. She could put up a shield against thoughtless gestures and harsh words, but what protection was there against such sweetness when all she wanted to do was sink into it? It spun seductive images of their future, each one a giant wave of warmth and happiness washing over the dark frissons of her doubts.

She put her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. Then wished fervently that what they had would never change.

* * *

Éternité was packed by the time Vanessa and Justin arrived. It was an interesting melding of French and Japanese sensibilities. The transparent hangings with hand-embroidered designs swirling like flags from the high ceiling reflected the meeting of east and west. Justin had never been to the restaurant, but he assumed it would be excellent—after all, it was Mark’s.

The tuxedoed maître d’ led them to a private party room on the second level. Justin’s mouth watered at the scent of seared meat and seafood and butter and sauces. He hadn’t realized he was quite that hungry. He turned to Vanessa. “Are you feeling okay? No nausea or anything?”

“I’m fine.”

He squeezed her gently, and they went in to meet their dinner companions.

Her brothers, Iain and Mark, were both dark with what everyone called the classic Pryce profile—clean and aristocratic, with a high forehead and a patrician angle to the bridge of the nose. Nobody looking at them would have ever questioned the family connection. Justin noted Iain’s slightly narrowed eyes. His friend was probably feeling conflicted right now. He was quite protective of his siblings, since Dane, the oldest Pryce brother, was somewhat of a jerk. Justin considered Iain the “good cop” of the two, while Mark was just laid back.

As predicted, they’d also brought their fiancées. Next to Iain was a brunette with a shy smile who must be Jane Connolly.
How surprising
. Justin had always thought his friend would end up with a flashy model named after a fruit. Mark had come with Hilary Rosenberg, whom Justin was familiar with already. He and her boss were related by marriage.

Hilary and Jane rose and hugged Vanessa, then Hilary introduced Jane and Justin, while the Pryce men greeted their sister.